Museums and galleries ramp up their offerings in autumn as Colorado’s cultural action moves from outside to in. It’s a particularly busy fall this year with star turns in Denver and Aspen as well as some truly experimental moments up and down the Front Range. Retrospectives, debuts, curtain calls. There’s plenty to choose from, plus a few solid surprises.

Through Oct 18. Chris Ofili, Night and Day, Aspen Art Museum

This summer exhibit spills into the fall, making it a terrific sideshow for seasonal trips into the mountains. Chris Ofili is an important figure in American art and this retrospective of vibrant paintings and drawings gives him his due, filling all three floors of the museum and crossing over genres.

This quirky exhibit is part art, part Americana and totally irresistible. All of Norman Rockwell’s magazine covers in one sentimental swoop. You either love this guy or you hate him already, but if you’re a lover, this is the ultimate show.

Ashley Eliza Williams is an adventurous painter who captures the ethereal edges of the Colorado landscape. Her skyscapes get their start in the real world before venturing off deep into the imagination. They can be earthy, edgy and a bit threatening.

This is something you don’t see every day: a major show devoted to artists working in iron. This partnership with the Western Cast Iron Art Alliance is full of interesting names (Viviane LeCourtois, Rian Kerrane and Elena Lourenco) and the promise of drawing a line from a long ago past to the contemporary present. Paired with exhbitis on “fired” glass and ceramics.

Easily the most exciting contemporary show headed to town this season, “Pretty/Dirty” captures the essence of Marilyn Minter, whose provocative paintings, photos and videos have shown the world over. Is she a feminist? A cultural commentator? A pornographer? Yes, yes and you decide.

1485 Delgany St. 303-298-7554 or mcadenver.org

Sept. 19-Oct. 24, “Solace,” new works by Amber Cobb, Gildar Gallery

Amber Cobb is one of Denver’s most engaging and amusing artists, using form-making, drawing and installation to investigate dreams, gender and social identity. Her work can be a mystery, quirky, fun, deep, and a little gooey, at times.

Susan Wick is an talented and eccentric Colorado artist who has never let herself be defined narrowly. This BMoCA installation takes it all in, looking back 50 years and covering all of Wick’s ground through painting, drawings, books, clay and fiber, plus puppets, and masks.

Hard to know what to expect from this show of work by international graffiti artist Miles MacGregor, who goes by El Mac. The Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center is a cultural leader in the region, though not exactly a hotbed of urban art. A totally enticing departure.

Kenneth Josephson ranks as one of the important American photographers of the 20th century. His conceptual works, exploring the way cameras shape how we see the world, set the stage for generations of artists to follow. This retrospective covers a broad swath, from 1959 to 2003, and includes early experimental works and late-career landscapes.

13th Avenue between Broadway and Bannock. 720-865-5000 or denverartmuseum.org.

DAM focuses on American artists this fall, putting together a retrospective of Andrew and Jamie Wyeth. It’s a big show with more than 100 works comparing, contrasting and connecting the dots between this famous father and son, who appear to be so different at first glance.

13th Avenue between Broadway and Bannock Street. 720-865-5000 or denverartmuseum.org.